These downsize the engines to 1.6-litre turbocharged units (the Mini’s is built by BMW Motorsport in Munich), and introduce technical restrictions designed to cut the costs for both manufacturers and privateers.

Mini will contest six of the 13 rounds in the 2011 WRC season, before committing to a full campaign in 2012. Prodrive will also make customer cars available to private teams; in total the firm expects to build 100 Mini WRCs over the next four years.

Northern Irishman Meeke joins Mini’s campaign after a frustrating defence of his Intercontinental Rally Challenge title with Peugeot. He’s long been regarded as one of the brightest young stars in the sport and has also conducted testing for Citroen (Xsara WRC and C4 WRC) in recent years.

Mini is likely to have at least one other regular driver; double world champion Marcus Gronholm is understood to be considering an offer from the team.

On a more productive note, its centre of gravity must by higher than other more sporty rally cars, so it must therefore be slower than if they had put the marketing men aside and used a normal low mini?